1 killed in Hallandale Beach crane accident

Incident happened in Golden Isles neighborhood

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - A man was killed when a crane toppled over and fell on him Thursday morning in the Golden Isles neighborhood of Hallandale Beach.

The accident happened about 9:45 a.m.Thursday at 466 Alamanda Drive.

City Manager Peter Dobens said the 27-year-old victim, later identified as Christopher Ricci, was working on a sea wall when the crane fell.

"It started to wobble a little bit, unsteady," Hallandale Beach police Capt. Sonia Quinones said. "At that point, it started to topple over. Construction workers noticed what was taking place and they took off running."

Quinones said Ricci was crushed by the crane while trying to run away.

A neighbor told Local 10 he had an unsettling feeling about the crane while walking his dogs Wednesday night.

"I figured with all the rain and all the mud and soft earth this thing just might go down," Geoffrey Siegel said. "I couldn't imagine it would stay up."

The crane also damaged the house next door, where a retired doctor lives.

"He was on that side of the house, so if it would have been 5, 6, 10 feet more towards the house, you know, there's a good chance he could have been hit," Michael Caschette said of his father.

Both the crane operator and operator of the boom gave their consent to undergo a blood test.

The Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration is investigating.

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